Rosberg aims for victory in Abu Dhabi

Nico Rosberg shared his mindset ahead of a final race that could crown him world champion for the first time, joining his father’s legacy 34 years later.

The German admits he did not yet know in Brazil what state of mind he would be in approaching the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, which will be decisive in his bid for the world title: « In Brazil, after the race, I joked that I continued to take things one race at a time. »

Now that the deadline is approaching for the Mercedes driver, who is heading into the last Grand Prix of the season leading the championship with a 12-point advantage, the strategy is simple: « I’m going to give it my all to finish the season with a win. But the more I think about it, the more I realize it’s not as crazy as it seems. I have to treat it like any other race. Doing a good job during a Grand Prix weekend is always a challenge. Nothing in this sport is easy, so this will be no different, and I still need to give it my all to achieve a good result. »

Number 6 can approach this weekend with optimism if we refer to his statistics, since for the past 7 years, he has always qualified ahead of his teammate on the Yas Marina circuit, except in 2010 when his prestigious teammate Michael Schumacher beat him: “I have good memories of winning this race last year, and it’s a place where I’ve always been strong in the past, so I have every reason to feel confident,” he says before adding, “The closer it gets, the more excited I feel.”

But what we must hope for the German is that he does not relive the same misadventures as in 2014, where technical problems had caused him to fall down the rankings and compromised his title chances against Lewis Hamilton.

From the other side of the garage, Hamilton is aware that the quest for his fourth title seems very uncertain since he does not have his destiny in his hands: « This was not a perfect season, and I am faced with pretty slim chances, no matter what I do this weekend, but I cannot and will not give up. You never know what might happen, as unlikely as it may seem. I’m approaching this weekend as I do for every race. I want to win and I will give everything to finish the season in the best way. »

The Briton will have to rely on a poor performance from Nico Rosberg or hope for a technical issue to affect him in order to expand his track record.